Roger Waters reveals the inspirations behind his new album in the latest issue of Uncut, dated July 2017 and out now.
Coming 25 years after his last rock album, Is This The Life We Really Want?, released on June 2, is in part inspired by Barack Obama‘s use of drones, Donald Trump‘s election and how “propaganda drives everything”.
Asked whether Trump gave the album focus, Waters replies: “Yeah, absolutely. Is This The Life We Really Want? – We have to understand people live in fucking misery and a lot of them will get blown to bits. We live in a state of perpetual warfare and it has been normalised.
“Of course, anybody with half a brain recognises that you can’t bomb another race out of existence. Unless you go down the nuclear road, when you kill everybody, everything. My belief is this is not the life we want, but propaganda drives everything. That’s why President Trump is so important to this story. He cares not one jot for anybody except President Trump.
“So it’s interesting where propaganda takes over, but it is driving us into very, very dangerous places. For all the propaganda about good guys and bad guys. White hats and black hats. The truth, the facts of anything become largely irrelevant. It’s whether you believe this version or that version.”
In the story – Uncut‘s latest cover feature – Waters also discusses meeting The Beatles at Abbey Road when Pink Floyd were recording The Piper At The Gates Of Dawn, his thoughts on Brexit, his upcoming tour, the “transcendental nature of love” and working with Radiohead producer Nigel Godrich.